Armed forces of Ukraine - protection of the state. How are they equipped? For military service, men who have reached the age of eighteen years, but not older than twenty-five years, are employed under contract. How long does compulsory military service last for soldiers and sergeants? In the army and other military formations serve twelve months. If the conscript has higher education (specialist or master), the service lasts nine months.
History
The Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada in 1991 on August 24 decided to transfer all military structures of the USSR Army in the Ukrainian SSR to its jurisdiction. This happened after the independence of Ukraine. In addition, it was decided to create the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.
Since 1991, many objects have passed under the jurisdiction of the country. The Armed Forces of Ukraine included eight artillery brigades, fourteen motorized rifle, four tank and three artillery divisions. In addition, Ukraine received two airborne and four special forces brigades, nine air defense brigades, seven military helicopter regiments, three aviation troops (about 1,100 military aircraft) and a separate air defense army.
Strategic nuclear forces were also deployed on the territory of the state. They totaled 176 ballistic intercontinental missiles and about 2,600 copies of nuclear tactical weapons. At the time of the declaration of independence of the region, the number of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reached seven hundred thousand people.
And then the USSR collapsed. Ukraine inherited one of the most powerful troops in Europe, equipped with nuclear weapons and the latest models of military equipment and weapons.
In a short time, the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada is developing a package of legislative documents for the military society. Here there is the concept of construction and defense of the Ukrainian army, and the provision “On the Ukrainian Defense Council”, and laws on defense, “On the Armed Forces of Ukraine”, and the Ukrainian Military Doctrine, and many other acts.
The foundations of the national army are being laid. In a short time, the General Staff, command systems, types of armed forces and the Ministry of Defense are formed. Preparations are being made for comprehensive support of troops and other measures.
The process of creating the Ukrainian army
What was the foundation of the process of creating the avant-garde? Of course, the political decisions of the Ukrainian Directorate regarding non-aligned and non-nuclear status of the state. At the same time, the Tashkent Agreement of 1992 was implemented, which established the most equal weapons for each republic of the former Soviet Union, and for the newly emerging “flank region”. It included Nikolaev, Zaporizhzhya, Kherson regions and the Crimean Autonomous Republic. The restrictions proposed by ratification of the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe have also been taken into account.
The Armed Forces of Ukraine have evolved due to the reduction of military structures, the number of military personnel, the size of military equipment and weapons. In the same years, the country's nuclear disarmament occurred. By June 1, 1996, not a single nuclear munition or charge remained on Ukrainian territory.
In 1995, the Ukrainian Minister of Defense V.N. Shmarov unveiled some facts. He said that, implementing a new military doctrine, the government decided to reduce the military space forces and liquidate the airdrome for receiving Buran space devices. He also added that by 2000 Ukraine will own a compact orbital grouping of the military-space forces, consisting of four vehicles.
Peacekeeping operations and military operations
The Ministry of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in 1992, on July 3, approved Regulation No. 2538-12 “On the interaction of the Ukrainian army battalions with the UN Peacekeeping Forces in conflict zones in the territory of the former Yugoslavia”. After that, the Ukrainian army began to participate in peacekeeping operations.
The peacekeeping contingent of Ukraine gained its first experience in hostilities in Bosnia. During that war, he was part of the UNPROFOR forces. On July 29, 1992, several units of the 240th Special Separate Battalion of UN Peacekeepers arrived in Sarajevo. The servicemen were fired for the first time in only two days. In the future, the military was repeatedly attacked by the warring party.
In November 19, 1993, the Ukrainian Supreme Council decided to increase the size of the Ukrainian contingent in the UN peacekeeping army on the lands of the former Yugoslavia. The formation and preparation of the sixtieth special separate battalion began. The unit was called "UKRBAT-2." This battalion arrived in Sarajevo in 1994, on April 19.
The most successful combat operation
What is so unusual that the armed forces of Ukraine can boast of? In the enclave of Zepa, BiH, the July 1995, the most successful military operation in the history of the Ukrainian army, was carried out. A unit of 79 Ukrainian peacekeepers attacked the Bosnian-Serbian Drina Corps. In addition, Muslim units of OG Zepa took part in the attack. There was no support from the UN or NATO. What was the result of this operation? More than five thousand citizens of Zepa and refugees were able to escape. There were no losses among Ukrainians.
In 1995, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution No. 1031. On its basis, the UN ceased to maintain peace in the lands of the former Yugoslavia. This function was transferred to the IFOR multinational force under NATO control. In 1995, the contingent of Ukraine was transferred to the IFOR army. And in 1996, these same people were transferred to the jurisdiction of the SFOR forces.
In 1997, under the Ukrainian-Polish agreements, the Polish-Ukrainian peacekeeping battalion POLUKRBAT was created. He was necessary for military service in Kosovo. The Ukrainian formation was sent to fulfill the task in Kosovo on September 1, 1999.
But service in the armed forces of Ukraine is both dangerous and difficult. During the performance of tasks in 2007, one was killed in an accident and three soldiers were injured. And another Ukrainian peacekeeper of the KFOR army was killed March 17, 2008 in the city of Mitrovitsa.
Peacekeeping destinations
On July 21, 2000, the Ukrainian team was sent to the UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon. It consisted of the third separate engineering battalion of the Ukrainian army and military medical personnel. In the spring of 2003, the composition was reduced from 650 to 250 troops. In April 2006, the military left Lebanon. As a rule, soldiers were engaged in construction work, destroyed explosive objects and cleared mined areas from mines. In total, they checked five hundred and fifty thousand square meters of terrain, discovered and neutralized 6341 explosive objects.
You can talk a lot about the Armed Forces of Ukraine for a long time. So, in August 2003, a contingent of peacekeepers was sent to Iraq. The main forces were withdrawn from Iraq in 2005, and the remainder only in December 2008. In Iraq, 18 troops were killed and 42 injured.
In August 2004, Ukrainian peacekeepers are sent to Liberia. By April 2006, the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the peacekeeping mission suffered the following losses: 44 soldiers were killed, one soldier was missing.
And in 2007, the Ukrainian army was sent to Afghanistan. And peacekeepers visit Côte d'Ivoire in November 2010. What happened in October 10, 2012? Ukraine joined the NATO's Ocean Shield mission. She began a fight with Somali pirates terrorizing the Gulf of Aden and the shores of the Horn of Africa. One frigate with a helicopter on deck was sent to the force.
General statistics of the activity of the Ukrainian contingent
The Ukrainian army participated in peacekeeping missions from 1992 to May 29, 2012. In total, over 39 thousand Ukrainian military personnel were involved during this period. And fifty of them died. It should be noted that by May 29, 2012 Ukraine took part in nine NATO and UN operations outside the country. In total, 627 Ukrainian troops were involved.
And what are the armed forces of Ukraine in 2014? By this time, the peacekeeping force took part in 12 peacekeeping missions of NATO, the UN and the EU outside the country. In total, 990 military, 20 helicopters and four armored vehicles took part. In 2014, on May 30, more than two hundred soldiers returned to Ukraine from Congo to participate in battles in the east of the country. They were withdrawn from the contingent of UN peacekeepers.
Partnership with NATO
Ukraine has been cooperating with NATO since February 8, 1994 in accordance with the Partnership for Peace program. In 2005, the Orange Revolution triumphed, and President Viktor Yushchenko came to power. After these events, cooperation with NATO intensified. The next president was elected V.F. Yanukovych, who slowed down the process of integration of NATO and Ukraine. But the Ukraine-NATO program worked. The training and retraining of the military of the Ukrainian army was carried out.
In addition, Ukrainian soldiers took part in NATO military exercises on Ukrainian territory, in the Black Sea and on the lands of other countries. The Armed Forces of Ukraine in 2014 are completely unlike the previous formations. Indeed, since March 11, 2014, Ukrainian airspace has been controlled by NATO aviation. For this purpose, long-range radar reconnaissance is involved, namely the E-3A AWACS-NATO aircraft. They are based at the Waddington and Heilenkirchen air bases. This is the UK and Germany. The devices perform flights over the territory of Poland and Romania. They fly along the border with Ukraine and control the Ukrainian sky.
On April 14, 2014, Y. Tymoshenko requested the leaders of all states to provide direct military assistance to Ukraine.
On June 19, 2014, Simon Smith, the UK ambassador to Ukraine, said the UK agreed to work with Ukraine to support the development of an effective and genuine military.
In 2014, on June 21, the USA of the Ukrainian army delivered one and a half thousand personal first aid kits. And on June 23, the NATO Trust Fund was created to assist the Ukrainian military sector. June 25, this decision was approved by 28 NATO countries.
And finally, the most interesting event in the history of the Ukrainian army. In August 2014, the Ukrainian Supreme Council called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to block the introduction of armed forces into Ukraine.
Contingent and equipment
In 2012, V.F. Yanukovych authorized the Ministry of Defense to prepare a realistic concept for the transformation of the army. In the process of preparation, the non-aligned status of Ukraine must be taken into account. Available economic resources should have been adequately evaluated. The army reform developed in 2012 implied a reduction in its size. So, what did the armed forces of Ukraine really expect? The year 2014 should have been characterized by the fact that one hundred thousand troops remained, and by 2017 - only seventy thousand.
It is noteworthy that in 2013 the total number of the Ukrainian army was 184 thousand people, of which 47 thousand were women.
But the Armed Forces in Ukraine expected a major change. In March 2014, Decree No. 303 was issued, pursuant to which a partial conscription of military servicemen began. And by April 2014, the task was completed by 90%. It is noteworthy that in May 2014, repeated selective mobilization was announced. The assembly of new formations began.
On March 19, 2014, the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council decided to create several operational headquarters attached to the regional state administrations of the Ukrainian border regions. In March 2014, seven battalions were formed for territorial defense in Left-Bank Ukraine . A. Turchinov on March 30, 2014 instructs the managers of regional administrations to begin creating battalions for the defense of territories in each Ukrainian region.
Military charters of the Ukrainian army
Now consider the Charter of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. There are several of them. In fact, this is a collection of laws of military service. On their basis, education, daily life, training and military activities of the army take place. These documents explain how a warrior is obliged to perform military service and to study military affairs. The moral and combat qualities that characterize the soldiers are described here. After all, they are reliable and skillful defenders of the motherland.
The charters oblige the soldiers to conscientiously carry out military service, to study weapons, military equipment and military affairs. They say that a soldier must remember all the lessons of the commanders and exemplary follow the techniques shown to him. Compliance with the requirements and provisions of the charters is mandatory for all Ukrainian army soldiers.
The life and work of the Ukrainian army is determined by the Charter of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. These military rules are divided into general-arms charters and charters of the types of troops.
Combined arms Ukrainian charters are:
- The charter of internal services of the Ukrainian army.
- Disciplinary charter of the Ukrainian army.
- Charter of guard duty and garrison.
- The drill rules of the Ukrainian army.
Guide
The President of Ukraine is the Supreme Commander of the Ukrainian Army. It is he who dismisses and appoints the highest command of the Ukrainian army and other military organizations. The President also leads the defense and national security sectors of the country.
The direct leadership of Ukrainian soldiers in the peace and war period is carried out by the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian army. By position, he is the head of the General Staff of the army. Only the President of Ukraine can appoint and dismiss him. The Ukrainian military are subordinate to the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, which appears in state policy on military development and defense. This department coordinates the movement of state and local government bodies in preparing the country for defense, and analyzes the military-political situation. It calculates the level of military threat to the security of Ukraine, ensures the functioning of the army and its readiness to perform various tasks.